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hazardpossum's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, and Murder
abicaro17's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
HOLY SHIT. Well gooddamm. So this is probably one of the best books I have ever read (well listened too but same difference). Wade Watts is a socially awkward poor 18 year old boy living in the year 2045. In this not so distant future, a immersive reality video game has taken over most of the planet. The Oasis was invented by James Haliday and Oggden Morrow. When Haliday died, his will revealed that he will leave all of his fortune and the entire Oasis game in the hands of the player who can find the egg he hid. Wade, and most of the Oasis population, has been searching for the first key for 5 years and when he accidentally stumbles upon the answer everything changes. This is a beautiful tale of love, friendship, perseverance, and ambition along with the message that reality is better than even the best recreations. I definitely thought this would be a boy book, based on the movie (which I have seen and can safely say this is almost nothing like it), but it pleasantly surprised me with how entertaining and emotionally deep Cline goes. This is a fantastic read/listen and I will be rereading this soon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
phantomgecko's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
If you don't think about this book critically at all, it's fun. That's why I finished it.
But dang dude I hated this. It's listening to a Redditor gatekeep mediocre media for 300+ pages. The most accurate word I can think for this would be masturbatory. I know that the author =/= narrator necessarily, but tbh I can't imagine why he would write this book in this specific way unless he personally just gets right off on it. This had v strong self-insert Mary Sue vibes.
For example, having to describe in detail all the (fake) tech used or having to talk about every article of clothing anyone puts on.
Also, obvs pop culture references are the whole book, but like, my dude. You don't need to explain every reference. This isn't Dora the Explorer.
My facetiously favorite line, paraphrased was 'it's their fault they don't have all the words to Schoolhouse Rock memorized' as if that's a normal thing. Like, bro, yeah, I know. Dissecting everything in Halliday's life is essentially their job, but the condescension and superiority complex that goes along with it is such a toxic part of fandom culture.
I kinda thought the narrative would loop around, and everyone would acknowledge that Halliday was psycho and not worthy of adoration or study. Wah wah wah, whiny piss baby can't forget pathetic childhood. But no. How silly of me.
Also, willing suspension of disbelief and all, but NO. It's just not possible for a kid to have read/watched/listened to/played all the things he has in 3 years. No amount of "that's all he does for 12 hours a day" can convince me that it's possible. He didn't just have 4 screens going at once on double speed. He claims to have consumed the media in a way that he apparently can remember every single thing in all of it. Every sound byte from every obscure snippet of media from a decade. He straight up says he's watched some movies over 100 times. There is simply not time for that. I cannot and will not get over this egregious stretch of the imagination.
And another thing...looking down on Star Trek Voyager and Star Trek Enterprise instantly lowered my opinion of Cline.
Science fiction in particular from the 80s is rife with sexism, and you can tell Cline triiiied to subvert that. But it was done in classic "nice guy" fashion. Sexism with a different face.
Oh, almost forgot about the atheist rant at the beginning. It honestly felt like a fourth-wall-breaking diatribe that didn't fit? Like, wah wah wah, I'm alive and anything good anyone has ever told me is a lie, the only point of life is to end and everyone dies, wah wah wah.
Do not recommend. Tbh, the movie was better.
But dang dude I hated this. It's listening to a Redditor gatekeep mediocre media for 300+ pages. The most accurate word I can think for this would be masturbatory. I know that the author =/= narrator necessarily, but tbh I can't imagine why he would write this book in this specific way unless he personally just gets right off on it. This had v strong self-insert Mary Sue vibes.
For example, having to describe in detail all the (fake) tech used or having to talk about every article of clothing anyone puts on.
Also, obvs pop culture references are the whole book, but like, my dude. You don't need to explain every reference. This isn't Dora the Explorer.
My facetiously favorite line, paraphrased was 'it's their fault they don't have all the words to Schoolhouse Rock memorized' as if that's a normal thing. Like, bro, yeah, I know. Dissecting everything in Halliday's life is essentially their job, but the condescension and superiority complex that goes along with it is such a toxic part of fandom culture.
I kinda thought the narrative would loop around, and everyone would acknowledge that Halliday was psycho and not worthy of adoration or study. Wah wah wah, whiny piss baby can't forget pathetic childhood. But no. How silly of me.
Also, willing suspension of disbelief and all, but NO. It's just not possible for a kid to have read/watched/listened to/played all the things he has in 3 years. No amount of "that's all he does for 12 hours a day" can convince me that it's possible. He didn't just have 4 screens going at once on double speed. He claims to have consumed the media in a way that he apparently can remember every single thing in all of it. Every sound byte from every obscure snippet of media from a decade. He straight up says he's watched some movies over 100 times. There is simply not time for that. I cannot and will not get over this egregious stretch of the imagination.
And another thing...looking down on Star Trek Voyager and Star Trek Enterprise instantly lowered my opinion of Cline.
Science fiction in particular from the 80s is rife with sexism, and you can tell Cline triiiied to subvert that. But it was done in classic "nice guy" fashion. Sexism with a different face.
Oh, almost forgot about the atheist rant at the beginning. It honestly felt like a fourth-wall-breaking diatribe that didn't fit? Like, wah wah wah, I'm alive and anything good anyone has ever told me is a lie, the only point of life is to end and everyone dies, wah wah wah.
Do not recommend. Tbh, the movie was better.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, and Religious bigotry
hazeleyeddreamer's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Slavery, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, and Classism
Moderate: Child abuse, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Confinement and Fatphobia
I put mass shooting and fire and injury but it's actually a bombing.lenorayoder's review against another edition
adventurous
3.0
I might have rated this 4 stars because I do think the world is cool, but the teen boy of it all gets to be a bit much, especially by the end of the book. At first I thought the main character was just an accurate portrayal of teen boyness, warts and all, but it becomes obvious as the book goes on that Wade can do no wrong (and actually those aren’t warts at all!) once he’s learned the Moral of the Story. Cline also really hits you over the head with said moral. And let’s not forget the clumsy exposition that continues throughout the novel. I can tolerate that at the beginning of a book, but the entire thing?? Also “rubenesque”. More than once. Kill me.
Kind of a bummer, because I think this book had a lot of potential. I still liked it though, and I’ll probably check out the sequel. I can definitely see why this was adapted into a movie and I’ll be checking that out too.
Kind of a bummer, because I think this book had a lot of potential. I still liked it though, and I’ll probably check out the sequel. I can definitely see why this was adapted into a movie and I’ll be checking that out too.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Murder, and Classism
Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Lesbophobia
akacasper24's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, Violence, and Alcohol
bookmark3brodi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Murder, Abandonment, War, and Classism
itsheyfay's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Lesbophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Ableism, Child abuse, Sexual content, Outing, and Abandonment
frankieclc's review against another edition
2.0
i didnt vibe with this at all i hated the writing style and the world building info dumps right in the middle of sections, the pacing was all off and i hate when men write female characters as unnecessarily angry or entitled
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Addiction, Body shaming, and Child abuse
m_hates_reading's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Wade (main character) is very annoying and almost unbearable at points, but somewhat lovable in an awkward, please-gain-some-self-awareness type way.
It’s a book that’s somewhat about found-family, and fighting for what you believe in- but mainly just an excuse for the author to do a bunch of world-building off of nerd-trivia (greatly appreciated, as I am a massive nerd).
All in all, a fun and exciting book, but not a particularly meaningful one. I see the nostalgia appeal for a lot of people- something I cant relate to though as I am currently a teenager.
I do like a passage towards the end, tough, where a character discusses that even when reality sucks, it’s the only place that’s real and, therefore the best- I really found that quite meaningful, even if not much else in the book was (and the author completely goes back on this point in the sequel)
A great read and one I believe really is deserving of its positive reputation.
It’s a book that’s somewhat about found-family, and fighting for what you believe in- but mainly just an excuse for the author to do a bunch of world-building off of nerd-trivia (greatly appreciated, as I am a massive nerd).
All in all, a fun and exciting book, but not a particularly meaningful one. I see the nostalgia appeal for a lot of people- something I cant relate to though as I am currently a teenager.
I do like a passage towards the end, tough, where a character discusses that even when reality sucks, it’s the only place that’s real and, therefore the best- I really found that quite meaningful, even if not much else in the book was (and the author completely goes back on this point in the sequel)
A great read and one I believe really is deserving of its positive reputation.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse, Death, Transphobia, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism